From the Collections of the Audie Murphy / American Cotton Museum, Frances Arnold Ellis Local History Gallery, Audie L. Murphy Hunt County Veterans' Exhibit

The photo on the left is a 1973 photograph of the home which was built on the site where Audie Murphy was born. Although the home was built in 1928, several years after Audie's birth, it was constructed with some of the same lumber and bricks acquired from the previous structure (Simpson, page 30). The picture was taken just before the home was demolished. The home was located about 400 yards away from highway 69 just outside of Kingston, Texas. A historical marker erected on the east side of the highway in 1973 now commemorates the location.

Archetectural drawings of the home were supposedly made shortly before the home was torn down. The drawings are reported to be maintained by the Audie Murphy / American Cotton Museum in Greenville, Texas but this has not yet been confirmed.

Help Needed: If anyone has information regarding the architectural drawings of this home or has better photographs, please email the webmaster at rlrod@msn.com.

Derelict railroad boxcar where Audie Murphy lived for several months in 1933 and again in 1937. Located just off the southern end of Celeste, Texas near the old Katy (Missouri, Kansas, and Texas) railroad lines. Photo provided Ms. Betty Tate and used with written permission.

In 1933, when Emmett and Josie Murphy with their 5 children June, Audie, Richard, Gene, and Nadine moved to Celeste, Texas with the primary purpose of enrolling the children in school. They lived in an abandoned railroad box car on the southern end of the small community for several months before renting a rundown home in Celeste until 1937. The railroad car no longer exists but its location is noted below.

While the family lived in Celeste, the two remaining Murphy children, Beatrice and Joseph, were born. It was here that Audie befriended the Cawthon family who played a prominent role in his life. In 1937, the Murphy family moved back into the abandoned railroad car for several weeks and then moved to a farm near Floyd, Texas located just west of Greenville. Audie finally moved out on his own in 1939 at the age of 15 after finding a job with Haney Lee who had a farm nearby (Simpson pp.18-19).

Location: 33°17'00.25"N 96°11'24.51"w
Google Map: https://goo.gl/maps/VT8yCizJZnBiJuvm8

Home of Audie Murphy's maternal grandparents, Jefferson D. Killian (died 1943) and Sarah Elizabeth Gill Killian (1863-1950) in Farmersville, Texas.

Audie Murphy spent a lot of time with his grandparents, Jefferson D. and Sarah Elizabeth Killian, at their hope in Farmersville, Texas. In fact, the Killian was a place of refuge for the Murphy children when times were difficult during the years of the depression. At the height of the depression, around 1929 or 1930, Audie's oldest sister, Corrine, left the Murphy family and moved in with the grandparents in their Farmersville home helping relieve some of the financial stress burdening the Murphy family.

As the family moved from community to community over the years, they never strayed too far from the Killian home. Around 1940, Emmett Murphy, who was known to disappear for weeks at a time while apparently seeking employment, finally vanished permanently. He had attempted to convince his wife and family to move with him to West Texas where he hoped to find work in the oil fields. Unconvinced that this was a wise move, Mrs. Murphy did not want to leave the area where her parents and lifelong friends lived. Her husband eventually abandoned the family in 1933 (Simpson, pp.18-19).

Help Needed: If you know the exact address of the Killian home in Farmersville, Texas, please email the webmaster at rlrod@msn.com.

Home of Audie's sister, Corrine and her husband Poland Burns Neathery Street, Farmersville, Texas from 1940 to 1941. Location where Audie Murphy's mother, Josie Killian Bell Murphy died. Photo provided Ms. Betty Tate and used with written permission.

This was the home of Corrine and Poland Burns from 1940 - 1941. During this period of time, Audie's mother and three youngest siblings, Nadine, Beatrice ("Billie"), and Joseph had moved in with their older sister and husband. Audie's father, Emmett Murphy had already abandoned the family and presumably moved to West Texas where he may have been working as an unskilled laborer in the oil fields.

It was in this home that Josie Murphy died on May 23, 1941 after a long battle with illness. At the time, Audie worked and lived in Greenville, Texas. Even still, he managed to travel to his mother's side in "record" time and stayed with her several days before she finally passed away. The official cause of death was listed as "endocarditis", an infection of the lining of the heart, complicated with pneumonia (Simpson pp. 27-28).

The Greenville garage apartment shared by Audie Murphy and William Bowen. Photo provided Ms. Betty Tate and used with written permission.

In 1941, Audie Murphy worked as an apprentice radio repairman for Jake Bowen in a Greenville shop on the corner of Wellington and McKinney in Greenville, Texas. At the time, Audie was living in a garage apartment with Mr. Bowen's son, William (Bill) who was Audie's close friend. The garage apartment was the last place Audie live in Hunt County, Texas before enlisting and beginning basic training at Camp Wolters, Texas (Simpson, pp.26-27, 42).

The garage apartment sits at the end of a long drive way located at the rear of the main residence (not seen here). The home would later become the property of Dr. D. L. Yarbrough. The current owner is unknown.

Located approximately near the corner of Wesley and Horsley in Greenville, Texas, the garage apartment is about 100 to 150 feet west of the corner on Horsley. As you travel west on Horsley from the corner, the house is easily viewed on the right side of the road.

Recent photo of Boles Childrens Home, Quinlan, Texas. Photo provided Ms. Betty Tate and used with written permission.

Founded in 1924, the Boles Childrens Home, located in Quinlan, Texas is a multiple building facility that provides residential care in a homelike atmosphere for children and single-parent families. It is licensed by the State of Texas to care for boys and girls.

When Audie Murphy's mother Josie Bell Killian Murphy died on May 23, 1941, her youngest children Joeseph, Nadine, and Beatrice ("Billie") were placed in the Boles Childrens Home by order of Hunt County authorities. Audie, although not even eighteen years old, was considered old enough by the county to take care of himself.

Although Audie Murphy never lived in this facility, its influence on him was profound. On more than one occassion he vowed during the war to several buddies to eventually earn enough money to have his siblings removed from the home and to reunite the family. With the unexpected help of monetary gifts from Hunt county residents presented to Audie Murphy on his return from World War II, he was able to keep that promise on August 8, 1945. In an agreement with his older sister Corrine and her husband Poland who promised to care for the younger siblings, Audie purchased a home on the southern end of Farmersville and furnished it which effectively brought the family back together (Simpson pp. 228-229).

A Home purchased by Audie Murphy, August 8, 1945 in Farmersville, Texas for older sister Corine and her husband Poland Burns under an agreement that they would provide a home to the three youngest siblings Beatrice, Nadine, and Joseph. The three siblings had been living in the Boles Childrens Home since May 1941 when Audie Murphy's mother died. Photo provided by Betty Tate.

On August 8, 1945 Audie Murphy purchased the R. L. Russell homestead in Farmersville, Texas using money given to him by community members shortly after his homecoming in June. The assessed value of the furnished home at the time of the purchase was $850. The furnishings were also bought for an additional $750.

The home made it possible to reunite the three younger siblings, Nadine, Beatrice, and Joseph who had been placed in the Boles Childrens Home when their mother, Josie Killian Murphy, died on May 23, 1941. Emmett Murphy, the father, had abandoned the family a year earlier.

At the time of their mother's death, Audie was approximately 17 years old and was declared by the county to be old enough to take care of himself. The placement of his siblings in the Boles Childrens Home was an event that Audie vowed to correct. On more than one occassion during the war, he told his buddies that he hoped to someday earn enough money to reunite what remained of his family. As it turned out, Audie was able to keep his promise. The home eventually burned down shortly after Corrine and Poland Burns moved to a new residence in 1952 (Simpson, pp.228-229).

Help Needed: If you have a clearer photo of this home, please email the webmaster at rlrod@msn.com.

4427 Melbourne Avenue, Hollywood, California. In a letter dated September 12, 1946, to the Cawthons of Celeste, Texas, Audie Murphy reported that he was living at this residence. Photo source: Google.com

After Audie's homecoming from World War II, he accepted an invitation from James Cagney and went to Hollywood to begin training as an actor and to possibly begin a movie career. In a letter dated September 12, 1946 to his life long friends, the Cawthons of Celeste, Texas, Audie reported that he was living at 4427 Melbourne Avenue, Hollywood, California (Simpson, page 260, footnote 10). It isn't known how long Audie lived in this home but the time spent here was probably very short.

An internet listing of the property describes it as having 4 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, 2,085 square feet, two floors, and a lot of 6,750 square feet. It was built in 1909.

The photo of the residence is a recent shot from Google. The home has apparently had some changes. The front porch has obviously been enclosed to create more living space.

Addison, Texas home owned by Audie Murphy. Later converted to a restaurant called named Dovies, the restaraunt has since closed.

Audie Murphy's Addison, Texas home was built in the early 1930's, and was designed by an east coast architect. It was used as a farm house on what was once Texas prairie. Later, in the 1950's, Audie Murphy purchased the estate as his own shortly after marrying Pamela Archer. At the time, he believed he would eventually return to Texas and settle down. As it turned out, Audie Murphy and his family never occupied the house and ended up living permanently in California.

The house was converted to Dovie's in May 1980 (no longer in business) and a large courtyard room was added. The four bedrooms which were once upstairs, were converted into dining rooms, with a private bar, which was used mostly for private functions. The downstairs remains almost the same. The porch was enclosed and the kitchen increased in size by using the garage and other buildings. The breakfast, dinning, lounge, and den all remain mostly as they appeared in 1930.

6233 Orion, Van Nuys, California. Home of Audie Murphy from 1953 until 1956. Photo provided by Eva Dano and is used with written permission.

Purchased in 1953 by Audie Murphy and his second wife, Pamela Archer Murphy. While living here, their two sons Terry Shannon and James Michael were born. The home has had many changes and improvement since the Murphy family lived in it.

Google satellite image of the TM Ranch near Vail, Arizona. Purchased in 1956, the acre had 17,000 and came with about 400 head of cattle and a place to keep Audie's recently acquired stable of quarter horses. The ranch was once part of the historical Empire Ranch and was sold in 1958 to Guy Mitchell, friend of Audie Murphy. A Tital II nuclear missile silo was just west of the ranch buildings by about a mile.

Bought by Audie Murphy in 1956 the TM ranch was named after Terry Murphy and is approximately 30 miles south east of Tucson, Arizona in Pima County just outside the community of Vail. Although isolated in a very remote area of desert, Google approximately pinpoints its address as 16901 S. Old Sonoita Hwy., Vail, AZ 85641.

The 17,000 acre ranch was acquired from Harry Mack of Tucson for $180,000. The property included 4 sections of deeded land and 22 sections under state lease. To the north was Benson Highway (now Interstate 10). The ranch extended south from the highway at the Southern Pacific railroad tracks to the Empire Mountains. Water was provided by Cienega Creek and Davidson Canyon and both passed through the property. The ranch came with a spacious ranch home and a place where Audie could keep a recently purchased herd of Quarter horses. Originally a part a part of the historic Empire Ranch, the property was later sold to Guy Mitchell, movie actor, singer, and friend to Audie Murphy. It is not known who owns the property today but U.S. Geological Survey describes the property by the nickname of the "Murphy Ranch". Located at decimal Latitude 31.9425831 and decimal Longitude -110.612020, its elevation is listed as 3983 feet or 1214 meters.

Historical Footnote: Approximately 1.75 miles to the northwest of the ranch buildings, is a Titan II Intercontinental nuclear missile silo which is now decommissioned. Construction of this site began on December 21, 1961 and was built in three phases with the final phase ending December 14, 1962. The silo was active and on alert status from October 24, 1963 until August 10, 1983. The silo was operated by the 390th Strategic Missile Wing out of Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Tucson, Arizona. A former member of this wing provided the details of the site and stated that he and other members of the wing were aware of the TM Ranch being in close proximity to their silo. When asked, Terry Murphy said he was unaware of any nuclear silo and that his father sold the property because he needed the money. The construction of the silo occurred shortly after the the nearby ranch property was sold by Audie Murphy.

1853 Coast Boulevard, Del Mar California. A duplex home probably used by Audie Murphy as a "stopover" when he travelled to the Del Mar racetracks to race his horses. Photo source: Google Maps.

This home is described as a duplex home and is located at 1853 Coast Boulevard, Del Mar, California 92014. A real estate listing on the Internet stated it has 4 beds, 2 baths, and approximately 1,680 square feet. The property was built in 1959.It is close to the Del Mar horse racing track and was probably used by Audie Murphy as an overnight stopover when he travelled to Del Mar to race his horses. Audie Murphy owned this home only for a few years and commented in his FBI file that the home was sold to "R. C. Hangar" of Dallas, Texas.

Purchased in 1956 this became the Murphy family home until 1971. The home was occupied by Audie Murphy, Pamela Archer Murphy and his two sons Terry Shannon and James Michael Murphy.

Purchased in 1956 by Audie Murphy, this became his last home until 1971. The home was occupied by his family, Pamela Archer Murphy and his two sons Terry Shannon and James Michael Murphy. The home was sold to help the family settle debts after Audie Murphy's death resulting from a plane crash on May 28, 1971.